


Heartless and Cold

by supernovainparadise



Series: The Witcher and The Bard [4]
Category: The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, And minor spoilers for Wild Hunt, Canon Typical Violence, Established Relationship, Half-Elf Jaskier, M/M, Mage Jaskier | Dandelion, No Dialogue, Songfic, sorta..., spoilers for the tv series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-01-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:09:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22327630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/supernovainparadise/pseuds/supernovainparadise
Summary: The forest can often be cold and unwelcoming to travelers, the dark trees hiding monsters within the depths. But for a sorcerer and his witcher, the mystery of the forest is merely something lying in wait, it's secrets available to those who look for them.But for those who look, have caution, for these secrets are often more dangerous than the forest itself.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion
Series: The Witcher and The Bard [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1596664
Comments: 6
Kudos: 380





	Heartless and Cold

" _Wolves asleep amidst the trees... Bats all a-swaying in the breeze... But one soul lies anxious wide awake... Fearing all manner of ghouls hags and wraiths..._ "

Jaskier's voice carried softly through the night, paired only with the sound of the crackling fire and Geralt sharpening his swords, an act he paused in once he noticed Jaskier singing a lullaby he had not heard in what felt like decades. It had grown unpopular as of late, probably due to the very bard singing it now.

" _For your dolly Polly, sleep has flown... Don't dare let her tremble alone..._ "

Geralt leaned back against the tree behind him, watching Jaskier as he sang. Though the man appeared innocent and soft at first glance, Geralt knew better than anyone that a storm rested just beneath his skin, always waiting to be released on those who dared to challenge him. But beyond the storm, Geralt knew he hid many secrets. Jaskier was an untapped well of ancient knowledge, of stories that speak of heartache and bitter failure. Many mornings, Geralt awoke to find Jaskier already up, dark circles under his eyes and the light gone from them. He wondered what caused Jaskier to put up his walls, those of the cheerful, harmless bard.

" _For the Witcher, heartless, cold... Paid in coin of gold..._ "

The more Geralt thought of it, the more he realized he knew little about his lover, aside from his time in Creyden and relation to Renfri. Funny, Geralt used to think, how destiny seemed to have intertwined them in such a cruel fashion. It had ripped away someone Jaskier had cared for dearly, only to throw him into the arms of the witcher who would one day come to love him. He didn't know where Jaskier was born, or anything of his parentage. He didn't know how he came to Ban Ard, or where he'd learned the sword skills that he passed onto Renfri. He didn't know where he'd learned to play the lute or sing. There were so many things he didn't know, and yet...

He felt as though Jaskier knew nearly everything about him.

" _He comes, he'll go, leave naught behind... But heartache and woe..._ "

Jaskier knew that he'd been abandoned on the doorstep of Kaer Morhen as an infant. Jaskier knew that he had endured more trials than any of the other boys when becoming a witcher. And beyond that, Jaskier had simply been there for so much of his life that it was difficult to imagine it without him. He'd been there when the law of surprise had saddled him with Ciri, had been there when he first met Yennefer. He'd been there during the dragon hunt, and so many times besides that. Even after their separation, and the short time between incidents they were apart, Geralt found it more and more difficult to remember his days without the bard's constant company. And looking back at the days before, it makes him more grateful than ever for it.

" _Deep, deep woe..._ "

Of course, part of Jaskier's charm was his secrets. The promise of mystery lured people in, and Geralt imagined it was what brought Jaskier so many suitors. It was what drew him into the bard in the first place, now that he thought about it. Much like the hunt of a monster, the longer Geralt spent examining Jaskier, the more he learned. One such thing was that Jaskier was half-elf, a secret the mage carefully guarded. Geralt had worked that one out after their encounter with Filivandrel, the bitterness in Jaskier's voice when speaking to the elves, the sense of abandonment. He'd been abandoned by both his races; the humans saw him as filthy, but the elves saw him as tainted. Neither side would ever want him. There were other clues for Geralt to follow, beyond Jaskier's anger at being a pariah among his people; his lack of aging through the years, his slimmer build and soft features, perhaps even something in his accent. But that was one of the few secrets Geralt had uncovered on his own; the handful of others had been revealed to him by Jaskier or others around them.

" _Birds are silent for the nights... Cows turned in as daylight dies... But one soul lies anxious, wide awake... Fearing all manner of ghouls, hags, and wraiths..._ "

Another secret he knew had actually been revealed very early on, though he hadn't connected the pieces until much later. Renfri's broach, a symbol of Creyden, wasn't unique. He had first thought it was, but shortly after they left Yennefer after the incident with the Djinn, he'd spotted it among Jaskier's belongings. At the time, he simply wrote it off as a similar-looking piece of jewelry, though after Jaskier told him about his time at Creyden and how he came to meet Geralt, the pieces had clicked. And the other major secret he knew had been revealed by Yennefer, after the wyvern attack by the seaside manor. That time, Geralt had been able to figure it out on his own, though it hadn't really set in until he heard the bard's voice again.

" _My dear dolly Polly, shut your eyes... Lie still, lie silent, utter no cries..._ "

Geralt watched Jaskier for a moment longer, before letting his gaze drift into the trees. His enhanced hearing let him hear small nocturnal creatures bustling around the underbrush and the fain wingbeats of an owl overhead. Like Jaskier, the forest too held secrets. Dark secrets, of the caliber that frightened even the bravest of men. They frightened Geralt at times too, though he would never admit to it. It wasn't the monsters or the bandits that scared Geralt, however. Not the dark that his piercing amber gaze cut through like a knife. It was, instead, the lack of knowledge. Very few knew what could lurk in forests like these, ancient and unforgiving. Many would enter, and never return to the world outside of it, but not always due to their deaths. Geralt had heard Vesemir tell stories when he was a child, stories of curses rooted in the forest floor, and old magic intertwined with the very existence of the forests.

" _As the Witcher, brave and bold... Paid in coin of gold..._ "

Geralt's gaze flitted back to Jaskier, and he quietly thought to himself that there was something like a warning in his tone. As the song drifted through the leaves and over the fire, it seemed to be keeping anything that wished to do them harm at bay. Despite the fact that Geralt knew it was unnecessary, he found it comforting in a way, knowing someone had his best interests at heart for reasons beyond saving their own hide. Although, Geralt sometimes worried that Jaskier's selflessness may someday land him in trouble that Geralt would be unable to save him from.

" _He'll chop and slice you... Cut and dice you... Eat you up whole..._ "

Geralt sighs softly to himself, and picks up his silver sword and whetstone yet again, and begins to sharpen it, glancing up and into the trees from time to time, and occasionally at Jaskier, quiet and secretive as always. And Geralt, slightly mystified and surprised by the sorcerer as always, finds that he doesn't quite mind the secrets Jaskier keeps, for his lover's company far outweighs anything unspoken between them. Beyond that, Jaskier's past is simply that; the past.

" _Eat you whole..._ "

**Author's Note:**

> Jaskier's song is "Lullaby of Woe", from The Witcher 3.


End file.
